Rajat Gupta
Born 1948 · Age 77
Indian-American business executive; first non-US-born managing director of McKinsey & Company (1994–2003); co-founder of Indian School of Business, American India Foundation, New Silk Route, and others; convicted of insider trading in 2012 and served prison time; author of Mind Without Fear (2019).
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Calcutta (Kolkata), India
Born Rajat Kumar Gupta to Ashwini Gupta (journalist/professor) and Pran Kumari (Montessori teacher).
Family moved to New Delhi
Family relocated when Gupta was five; his father started the Delhi edition of Hindustan Standard.
Mother died; orphaned
Gupta's mother died two years after his father; he and siblings began living independently.
Ranked 15th in IIT-JEE; admitted to IIT Delhi
Placed 15th nationally on the IIT entrance exam and entered IIT Delhi on scholarship.
Graduated IIT Delhi, BTech in Mechanical Engineering
Received Bachelor of Technology (Mechanical Engineering) from IIT Delhi.
Accepted to Harvard Business School
Applied to and entered Harvard Business School; economics professor Subramanian Swamy provided a recommendation.
MBA from Harvard Business School (Baker Scholar)
Graduated with distinction as a Baker Scholar from Harvard Business School.
Married Anita Mattoo
Married Anita Mattoo, whom he met at IIT Delhi; she was an electrical engineer.
Joined McKinsey & Company
Joined McKinsey after HBS; initially rejected then hired after professor intervened.
Head of McKinsey offices in Scandinavia
Transferred to Scandinavia and became head of the firm's offices there; considered an early career breakout.
Elected Senior Partner at McKinsey
Promoted to senior partner at McKinsey & Company.
Head of McKinsey Chicago office
Became head of the Chicago office, continuing ascent within McKinsey leadership.
Elected Managing Director (Global Head) of McKinsey
Became first foreign-born managing director (CEO) of McKinsey & Company; later re-elected in 1997 and 2000.
McKinsey expansion under Gupta
During his tenure McKinsey opened offices in 23 new countries, doubled consultant base to 891 partners and increased revenue 280% to $3.4B (by end of tenure).
Elected to University of Chicago Board of Trustees
Became a trustee of the University of Chicago.
Co-founded Indian School of Business (ISB)
Co-founded ISB with Anil Kumar; served as chairman of governing and executive boards; ISB later ranked among top global MBAs.
Co-founded Scandent Solutions (approx.)
Co-founded Scandent Solutions with Ramesh Vangal before stepping down as McKinsey managing director (exact year not explicitly stated).
Co-founded American India Foundation (AIF)
Co-founded AIF with Victor Menezes and Lata Krishnan in response to a 2001 earthquake in India.
Chairman of U.S.-India Business Council
Served as chairman of the U.S.-India Business Council (2002–2005).
Stepped down as Managing Director, returned to Senior Partner
Completed three full terms (maximum) as managing director and became senior partner again.
Recognized as first India-born CEO of a multinational
Widely regarded as one of the first Indians to break the glass ceiling as the first Indian-born managing director of a major multinational consultancy.
Co-founded Voyager Capital (with Rajaratnam & Ravi Trehan)
Co-founded Voyager Capital; fund capitalized at $50M, with Rajaratnam reportedly owning 80% initially; Gupta was an investor/partner.
Appointed Special Assistant to UN Secretary-General (Management Reform)
Appointed special assistant to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan for management reform (2005).
Co-founded New Silk Route (formerly Taj Capital Partners)
Co-founded/chaired private equity firm New Silk Route with Parag Saxena and Victor Menezes (firm formation mid-2000s).
Joined Goldman Sachs board
Elected to the board of directors of Goldman Sachs (served 2006–2010).
Elected Trustee, Rockefeller Foundation
Named to the Rockefeller Foundation Board of Trustees (served 2006–2011).
Joined Procter & Gamble board & became non-exec chairman of Genpact
Became a director at Procter & Gamble and non-executive chairman of Genpact (both posts until March 2011).
Named founding chairman of Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI)
Appointed founding chairman of PHFI in March 2006 and served until resigning in March 2011 (public health focus).
Became Senior Partner Emeritus at McKinsey
Transitioned to senior partner emeritus; continued to maintain an office and receive compensation.
Chairman, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (founding board member)
Served as a founding board member and then chairman for The Global Fund (served Apr 2007 to Mar 2011).
McKinsey senior partner emeritus compensation reported
Reported to have received $6 million compensation in 2008 as senior partner emeritus.
Joined AMR (American Airlines parent) board
Served on the board of AMR from 2008 until 2011.
Estimated net worth reported
Press reported Gupta's net worth at approximately US$84 million in 2008.
Reported annual salary range during McKinsey tenure
Press reported Gupta's annual salary during his MD tenure as roughly $5–$10 million/year.
Goldman's emergency board meeting re: Buffett investment
Sept 23, 2008 teleconference board meeting about Warren Buffett's $5B investment; Gupta called Rajaratnam afterward (featured in later prosecution evidence).
Elected Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2009).
Joined Harman International board
Served on the board of Harman International from 2009 to 2011.
SEC filed civil complaint alleging insider trading
SEC filed an administrative civil complaint alleging Gupta provided insider tips to Raj Rajaratnam; complaint alleged tips generated >$23M in illicit profits/loss avoidance.
Goldman Sachs board term expired
Served on Goldman Sachs board until term expiration in 2010.
Reportedly maintained multiple advisory and board advisory roles
Served or advised groups including Symphony Technology Group, Fjord Capital Partners, Clutch Group, OmniCapital and others (dates vary; many roles ended by 2011).
Resigned as ISB chairman
Resigned as chairman of the Indian School of Business in March 2011 amid the emerging investigations.
Named in SEC allegations regarding Rajaratnam/Galleon case civil complaint
SEC alleged Gupta tipped Rajaratnam, leading to alleged illicit profits and loss avoidance of more than $23M (SEC civil complaint filed Mar 1, 2009; civil case developments continued through 2011).
Resigned from multiple boards and positions
By 2011 Gupta had resigned/taken leave from several boards including ISB chairman (resigned Mar 2011) and others as investigations unfolded.
Criminal charges filed and arrested; released on $10M bail
U.S. Attorney's Office filed criminal charges (insider trading); Gupta was arrested in NYC, pleaded not guilty, and released on $10M bail the same day.
McKinsey severed professional ties
After the insider trading revelations and conviction, McKinsey stated it no longer had a professional relationship with Gupta and reportedly removed him from alumni resources.
Criminal jury trial began in New York
Jury trial for insider trading charges commenced on May 22, 2012.
Found guilty on four felony counts (conspiracy & securities fraud)
Jury found Gupta guilty on three counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy (acquitted on two other charges).
Sentenced to two years in prison; $5M fine
Judge Jed S. Rakoff sentenced Gupta to two years imprisonment, an additional year supervised release, and ordered $5 million in fines.
Ordered to pay $6.2M to Goldman Sachs
Reportedly ordered to pay $6.2 million to Goldman Sachs in a related action (February 2013 reports).
Federal Appeals Court upheld conviction
On March 25, 2014, a Federal Appeals Court upheld Gupta's conviction.
Supreme Court appeal denied/appeal process concluded
Gupta lodged appeal to U.S. Supreme Court; subsequent rulings in 2014–2015 left convictions upheld (April 2015 reference to outcome).
Surrendered to begin two-year prison term
Gupta surrendered to authorities and began serving his two-year federal prison sentence (mid-June 2014).
Second Circuit agreed to hear an appeal (procedural)
In February 2016 the U.S. Second Circuit agreed to hear aspects of Gupta's appeal (procedural developments continued post-release).
Released to monitored house arrest
Released from federal prison to monitored house arrest at his Manhattan home; allowed to go to an office on weekdays.
Released from house arrest
Completed house arrest period in March 2016 and became fully free from supervised house confinement.
Federal court denied attempt to toss conviction
On January 7, 2019, a federal court denied Gupta's effort to have his insider-trading conviction tossed.
Published memoir 'Mind Without Fear'
Gupta's memoir Mind Without Fear was published by Juggernaut Books in March 2019; he gave in-depth interviews about the case.
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